Treats
by Idatathme
Summary: Ensign Alex Harvey is interupted by a friend before she is due to beam down on a routine away mission. However, this visit is anything but routine. SpockOC. Originally a one shot, more updates soon. Some strong language.
1. Something Sweet

So, this all started with me wanting to write a bit of a Star Trek story after weeks of being addicted to PyroQueenOfFire's amazing Spock/OC fic "Can't Stop The World". (hint hint, go read it! It's seriously wonderful!)

I told a friend of mine what I was writing, and she decided to make it a challenge.

She picked out some keywords. (I gave her a limit of ten, but she kindly only gave me six)

Any kind of objects, words, sayings and emotions that she wanted me to use, I had to find a way to incorporate them all into the story somehow.

I got landed with:

Lollipop, Frustration, "Your Vulcan Mind", Flashbacks, Argumentative and a Bug.

Sorry if it's pathetically done and boring. I'm not very good at this sort of thing, heh..

...but there's fluff at the end, and EVERYONE likes fluff, right?! :D

If not, then I'm sorry. Don't blame me, blame her! *points in general direction of Lauren's house* xo

**********EDIT* A few people have asked for this to be continued, rather than being left as a one shot. So! I'm gonna be nice, oblige them and write a couple more chapters. If you like it, feel free to keep checking back for updates! :) xo ***********

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The room was dimly lit as Ensign Alex Harvey packed her things ready for her away mission later that day. Tying her long, chocolate hair up into a messy ponytail and pulling on her boots, she let out a large, heavy sigh as she stared at her reflection in the mirror. She had barely gotten any sleep the previous night, and her eyes were a dead give-away. She never did get any rest when she was chosen to go planet side.

During her first year, she couldn't wait to get off the ship and do some work on the ground, but pretty soon she realized more away jobs meant more things to go wrong. Over her last three years aboard the Enterprise, she'd lost count of the time things had turned sour off-ship. The missions always stressed her out. Hell, that was probably the reason Jim sent her on so many of them. He just loved watching his favourite cousin squirm. Not that she could blame him, they only had each other out there in space, and he was a mischievous bastard at the best of times. Turning away from the mirror before she got too thoughtful, she decided to reach over into her bedside drawer and take out a lollipop. If there was one thing any woman could appreciate, it's that candy always made everything better. Always.

After lazily throwing her data pad and a few loose power cells into her pack, she zipped it shut and clumsily dropped it on the edge of her bed. She stood there, surveying the room and enjoying the nice, strawberry smell now drifting through it, just as her door panel chirped indicating she had a visitor. She turned around just as the door opened, revealing a familiar Vulcan silhouette. Forgetting to take the lollipop out of her mouth she welcomed him, her words tumbling out rather messily. "Commander Spock? Please." while motioning of him to step inside. "What can I do for you? I was just about to replicate a drink, if you're at all interested?" Alex offered lightly, trying to wipe a tiny bit of saliva off her mouth discreetly. It wasn't unusual for Spock to take five minutes out of his schedule to check up on her before a mission. He regularly did so on behalf of the captain, whenever Kirk couldn't be bothered to move his cocky ass from the bridge, but she wasn't due to beam down for another twenty minutes, at least. This was a lot earlier than she would have normally expected him.

"That will not be necessary, Ms. Harvey." He declined, cocking his head slightly at her muffled speech, "The captain wishes to see you down in medical. He sent me to make sure that you are all set before you leave your quarters, as there may not be time for you to retrieve anything once you are done with Doctor McCoy."

"I see..Wait, what's going on in medical? Is everyone okay? Nothing's wrong, is it?" She asked, removing the lollipop from her mouth abruptly.

"No, not at all." Spock replied quickly, noting the young woman's fear for her colleagues. "The captain has just discovered that there may be a few harmful viral strains left over from the collapse of a nearby research facility on location. You will be administered with the right vaccines before beaming down to the surface. It is precautionary, nothing more." he clarified.

"Oh, okay then, good.. Please, don't do anything like that to me again, Spock." Alex said, trying to laugh off her concern.

"I apologize, I will try to phrase my sentences more carefully in the future. Now, as we are somewhat pressed for time, is there anything else you need to do before I escort you to Doctor McCoy?"

"Um..I'm not sure, just give me a moment, and I'll be with you." she said, and with a nod from him, she began to swiftly potter around, looking for anything she may have forgotten about. She moved to make a final check in her bathroom, knowing that with her forgetfulness, anything could be left anywhere carelessly. She looked in the mirror again for one last time, when she caught Spock looking at some of the photographs she had on her coffee table. Turning around to look at him properly, she began to study him.

She'd been through hell and back with this man countless times, and looking at him right now, there were still so many questions left unanswered. He was alien to her in many ways, and he intrigued her endlessly. Being related to Jim Kirk, albeit somewhat distantly, she'd heard about Spock a few times, whenever Jim regaled her with his awe-inspiring, captain-y stories. She had spent many days since her arrival engaging him in heated discussions, trying to provoke anything that could give her insight into his logic, his thoughts, his mind.

"Is there something I can do for you, Ms. Harvey?" she heard Spock's voice, stopping her train of thought.

"Excuse me, commander?" she asked, a little dazed, not entirely aware of his meaning.

"You appeared to be looking directly at me. I was merely inquiring as to the reason." he replied.

"Oh, I'm sorry." she said, feeling slightly embarrassed, " I..I was just lost in thought. This mission, it's pretty similar to something we've already seen. I was just having a few flashbacks. I didn't mean to stare." Alex explained hurriedly.

"I see. There is no need for apologies. Although I do not recall this mission you speak of." He said, marginally inclining his head as he tried to think back too.

"Well, I can't remember the name of the planet, myself. I do however, remember you lecturing me on the ethics of causality, all because I stepped on a bug." Alex said, a hint of amusement on her lips. He raised an eyebrow in response.

"It was logical to explain the theory to you, as it seemed you had no idea of the effects you had on their ecosystem. If I had not, it could have been detrimental to their survival." he replied seriously.

"The planet itself was detrimental to their survival, Spock. It imploded." she retorted like a child. Then followed a moment of silence as they both reminisced, before Spock stood up, gesturing that they were running out of time.

"The captain expected us at med bay approximately four and a half minutes ago. It would be in our best interests to head down there before he grows too impatient."

"Well then all the more reason to keep him waiting. Jim always did need to learn about patience.." she trailed off playfully.

"I do not deem it advisable to keep him waiting. I would elaborate, but it would be lost on you, no doubt, as you are related and have probably experienced his displeased attitude first hand." he remarked, and to Alex it seemed like he was being condescending. She hated being patronised.

"Exactly." she said, her temper beginning to flare a little, "therefore I haven't got anything to fear from him. If I'm being honest, the real reason I wanna delay this?" she offered, and he raised yet another inquiring eyebrow at her open remark. "Is because I really hate injections." she grinned goofily.

"If I may, Ms. Harvey, would it not be easier to get them over with, than prolong the procedure, and in turn prolong your fears?"

"Yes, of course. There's that, or there's the fact that 'getting them over with' means pain. Why settle for going through with it smoothly when I can get back at Jim a little for making me go on this stupid mission? He deserves to be kept waiting for being so petty. He knows I hate these missions. The needles are just a bonus for him." She stated almost bitterly, like a spoiled kid. She looked at him as he began to speak.

"As you are on board this ship, I believe it is obvious that it is your duty to perform whatever jobs the captain needs you to. His orders are orders, nothing more. Your attempt to retaliate is therefore, using your own terms, somewhat petty. Further more, you are well aware that the captain does offer a choice in your case, you merely feel obliged to accept as not to feel the favourite. It is highly illogical for you to complain about your situation, when you are indeed the one who put yourself in it." Spock told her, his voice laced with the faintest hint of frustration. Alex laughed inwardly. Not many people would be able to pick up on that, but she'd gotten to know him enough to notice the little things. Though his face would never betray it, he wasn't one to be taken away from duty lightly, even for a friend. She found that thought angered her somewhat; that even though she felt so close to him, he would never show a full indication of what he felt back. It wasn't like she was looking for a relationship with the guy, it was just as if he was merely putting up with her being around or something. Not that she would expect any less, but he could at least look like he was bothered being her friend. Sure there were little fleeting expressions now and again, but his emotionless mask had begun to take her toll on her. Fucking Vulcans. This only spurred her on, and she suddenly felt like playing a little mind game.

"You should know by now Spock, not everything has to be constrained by logic, right? Your choices are what affect you, regardless of whether they seem logic or not. It is also well known that it is often emotion that over weighs thought when one is under duress. Mine, in which case, just happens to be a stubborn, cocky, arrogant cousin." she said, clicking her lollipop against her teeth unnecessarily loudly.

"Yes, that is correct. You appear to forget however, that though I am indeed half human, I was subject to a Vulcan upbringing. Having been taught to subdue needless emotion, I am able to make decisions based on facts and statistics, rather than clouding my judgement with said feelings." He replied calmly, though she caught him glancing at the lollipop in her mouth, a flash of annoyance passing his features. That pleased her to no end.

"Then tell me something;" Alex drawled, making sure to make any kind of noise with her candy as she spoke, "I remember you said to me once that your father explained something to you...about.." She pretended to think, "..about Vulcan's feeling more than even humans or something? So all this talk of suppressing your emotions must become hypocritical at some point, right?" she asked, trying to sound as vexed as possible.

"That is not a valid assumption, Ms. Harvey. You seem to feel angered by the fact that you are not gaining the answers you wish for. This once again proves my point that even you yourself cannot simply ascertain your goals without getting yourself worked up on trivial matters. If I were even to begin to explain how the ways of my people affect my feelings, you would not benefit from anything I could say." Spock retaliated, still as cool an exterior as ever. She was failing, miserably. She wondered about what she could do to recover the situation, when it hit her. It was a long shot, and it was probably saying a bit too much, but she couldn't afford to give up now.

"Indulge me then, Spock? One question, and I'll let you get back to your duties, you can escort me to medical and...whatever." she said, waving a hand in the air for effect.

He nodded silently, waiting for her to continue. She stepped closer to him, looking him right in the eyes, challenging him.

"I don't think your Vulcan mind can truly understand the vastness of emotion. Your race is too focused on being all superior and knowledgeable that you play down the importance of it. I know that on Vulcan, when you were young, you were conflicted about your human side. Your mentors taught you to ignore it, the bullies beat it out of you. I don't think you remember what it's like to feel, do you? Even more so I think you don't want to feel anymore, especially after Lieutenant Uhura."

She stopped. Still looking at him, looking for anything that would unconsciously show itself after she brought up his past ship-board romance, but there was nothing.

"Are you afraid of emotion, Spock?"

He stared at her, unblinking and unphased, as she searched his eyes for a hint or clue to show her what he was thinking about. If anything. To her, it seemed like he hadn't even registered any of what she'd just said; His face was as emotionless and void as ever.

After a long pause, she closed her eyes and let out a frustrated sigh, beginning to retrieve her bag from the bed so they could leave. It was like he'd shut down completely. A million and one thoughts flew through her mind. She'd taken it too far, and she regretted everything she'd just said. Why was she so stupid? That was so insensitive of her. It was those god damn Kirk genes, she bet. Alex had barely turned away when she felt him gently lay a hand on her shoulder. She turned back to face him, ready to apologise profusely, when he lifted his other hand and used it to take the lollipop from her mouth. No sooner had Alex begun to protest, when she was silenced by soft lips being pressed against her own. Her eyes widened in shock at the realization and utter confusion of what was going on. Her mind was blank, and after a moment her instinct took over she began to kiss back, as one of his hands lightly rested on her cheek. Before she knew what she was doing her hands had found their way into his hair, and as she moaned ever so slightly into the kiss, he took the opportunity to slide his tongue slowly into her mouth. It was a gentle kiss, and Alex began to feel light-headed as his own taste mixed with the strawberry flavour in hers. After a few, long minutes, she heard a beeping coming from over by the door; Somebody was trying to contact her. Spock pulled away while she kept her eyes closed, mentally cursing whoever it was, while still trying to understand what had just happened, and subconsciously trying to will his lips onto hers again. Neither of them made a move to answer the transmission. Then, Spock began to say something, bringing her out of her daze.

"Fearing them is indeed one way of putting it, Alex. A more apt explanation may be that I am simply incapable of comprehending my feelings, and displaying them in the correct way after so many years of repression. I trust my actions have assured you of that." he stopped briefly, thinking of how to continue, before speaking again. "We are now eight minutes overdue in medical. I suggest we leave now, and save ourselves the trouble of listening to the captain's remarks as to what took us so long." Having finished his explanation, Spock brought his hand and held Alex's lollipop up so that it was level to her face. She stared at it blankly. Her vision alternated between the little, glistening red sphere and the Vulcan's brilliant, dark brown eyes. She swore that for a millisecond, a familiar glint of mischief appeared in his eyes, and she saw his lips curl into a trademark smirk. It never registered fully, however. All she could do was nod slowly, her mind in a complete mess. A fantastic, lovely, happy one at that, but still a mess. She flinched slightly when she felt a warm hand take hers, but relaxed when it was lifted to take the lollipop from his grasp. Spock let go of her and casually walked over to the door. Opening it, he simply gestured for her to follow. His emotionless face looked back at her once, before exiting the quarters as if nothing had happened.

Fucking Vulcans.


	2. An Iowan Upbringing

I always struggle with stories.

The pressure of writing loads gets to me, then I can't think properly and it ends up drifting into a messy page of words that mean nothing, haha.

SO! I'm not gonna make this into a story, per say...More a collection of one shots, showing key parts of Alex's life leading up to that last moment with Spock.

The next couple chapters aren't gonna have much Spock in though.. In fact, they probably won't have any at all, and for that I apologise! But I wanna really let you all see the kinda life Alex has lead up until her meeting with our favourite Vulcan. I promise I'll work him in there somehow though!

This one basically explains how she grew up with Kirk. Bear in mind this is when they're still teenagers, hence no mention of Starfleet or anything. It's a bit shorter than the last one, unfortunately. I hope it lives up to the last chapter! Haha.

Thanks for all the wonderful reviews and messages. You're all such gorgeous people! :D

Oh! & special shout out to PianoPlayer00, for giving me the whole back story idea, as well as for all her lovely, kind words. You're awesome! :)

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The night was warm. The sun-baked Iowa soil stretched on for as far as the eye could see. Dust from the roadside was blown gently across worn tarmac by a tired breeze. A small convenience store was the only building in sight, deserted. It was silent, for the most part. Crickets chirped lazily in the twilight, hidden amongst the random tufts of grass along the beaten track. A low, electrical buzz accompanied them; a broken light flickered on and off irregularly. One lone car trundled past, its headlights burning a path through the wilderness, whipping up a cloud of smoke and debris as it went. Silence came again.

About two minutes later, the sound of feet padding along the hard road surface disturbed the night furthermore. A fence rattled as a body flung itself upon it. A feminine voice scathingly shushed it's partner for making such a racket. "Will you stop that?!" it whispered harshly, "Somebody could still be here for crying out loud!"

"Relax, Alex!" a male counterpart whispered back. "I told you, the security guard always takes off early on a Thursday. I've done this plenty of times. You trust me, right?" A quiet moment passed, before "Hey! Don't look at me like that!"

"I wouldn't have to if you weren't so stupid!" Alex retorted. A metallic clunk sounded out as she dropped a bag onto the ground. "Of course I trust you, moron. I wouldn't be out here helping you otherwise. Why you had to ask me to come and not any of your other offender friends however, is beyond me.." She trailed off as she rummaged around for a pair of wire cutters. The male bent down next to her and clapped her roughly on the shoulderblade, almost making her topple over. She turned to him, plastering a short scowl to her features. The face looking back at her grinned widely, his light brown hair being delicately tousled by the wind, and his piercing ocean eyes dancing with mischief.

"Because, dear cousin, you need to learn a few things..And well, who better to teach you than the master himself?" he paused for dramatic effect, placing his hands on his hips and striking a proud pose. Alex jabbed him in the ribs while he was vulnerable, and he let out a small pained grunt as he rubbed them better. "I'm sick of your mom coddling you all the time Al. She's gonna turn you into some shy little recluse or something. You need to get out more, live a little, y'know? It's in your best interests, I'm just helping you along here!"

"By making me break into a liquor store?!" she exclaimed, "Jesus, Jimmy! You could have started me off a little slower, don't you think?" He didn't reply. Instead, he smiled again and ruffled her hair as he stood up, walking back over to the high fence surrounding the shop. Alex muttered under her breath at him while she pulled out the pliers. "Then again," she mumbled to herself, "it's not as if this is a master break-in or something..alcohol? What the hell is he thinking? This is so pathetic. He could just as easily buy some, 's not like it costs the world or anything..." She made her way over to Jim, letting the tool fall into his upturned palm.

"Now, I'm gonna cut off the barbed stuff at the top, won't take a minute. You keep a lookout for anyone coming this way, okay?" He turned to her, only to see her staring into the distance, chewing on her lip, barely listening. Exasperated, he grabbed her by the chin and forced her to look him in the eye. "You see anything, and I mean anything, you tell me straight away. Got it?" He told her seriously.

"Yeah yeah, Jimmy. I got this. Don't worry, just do it quick." She replied flippantly. With an annoyed sigh from him, she edged out from the shadow of the building slightly, to get a better look down the road. A few boring minutes passed, the air was littered with curses and small cries of pain from behind her, as Jim clumsily cut himself on the barbs. Alex shook her head in silent despair as she repeated his words to herself, impersonating him; "I've done this plenty of times. You trust me, right?" she scoffed. Yeah. Right.

Giggling to herself, her ears picked up on a faint beeping noise, far to her left. Following the sound, she looked up to see a shiny, silver dot on the horizon. It was getting closer. "Shit!" she swore lowly, sprinting towards her relative as fast as she could. "Jim! Drone! About 400 yards away and coming up fast! Hurry the fuck up!" she breathed fiercely.

"Damn it, they always have the worst timing." he stated casually "Okay, okay, don't panic." he said, climbing down slowly and taking her hand in his. She was about the smack him for taking so much time. Why wasn't he bothered? Stupid male superiority complex.. "Round the back, there's a dumpster. C'mon, we'll hide there 'till it's gone." They were half way there, and the beeping was almost on top of them, when Alex suddenly wrangled free from his grasp and ran back to the fence. "What the hell are you doing?!" Jim growled after her. He'd listened to the signal the upcoming droid was giving out, and it had reported a sighting to whoever owned it. If she was caught it'd mean trouble, fast.

"The goddamn bag!" was all she needed to say. Racing around the corner, she heaved the sack up into her arms, the weight of it making her muscles groan instantaneously. Mentally cursing her relative for making her bring so many tools, she rounded back on herself, heading to the bin, when she saw Jim pointing behind her wildly. That could only mean she had seconds before it would be able to spot her. She couldn't help it. She looked behind her, and it was a big mistake.

The drone was in fact already there, stopped dead in it's tracks. The moon shone of it's small, spherical body as it scanned the opposite side of the road. It hadn't seen her yet. If Alex moved now she knew she could make it round the back safely, but she was rooted to the spot. Her arms were exhausted, they couldn't take the strain of the heavy container in her hands. If she dropped it, there'd be no chance. It'd see her in an instant, and she'd be in a world of trouble within seconds. Lost in thought, she let out a small squeak as a hand was placed over her mouth, and she felt herself being dragged backwards. She saw the probe turn having heard her, before it disappeared behind the wall and she could see nothing. Pitch black. Her adrenaline was pumping as her heart beat franticly in her ears. Loud breathing came from her right, and wherever she was smelled dreadful. A reassuring hand was placed over hers firmly, which she knew instantly to be Jimmy's. She let her mind rest a fraction.

Minutes seemed like hours as they sat there among the bags of trash, listening to the electronic scout outside. Eventually, they heard it transmit a radio message back to its owner, and the beeping was lost as it carried on down the road having found nothing worth reporting. Jim got out first, to make sure everything was fine, Alex following a second later. "See? Told ya. Nothing to worry about. Now, let's get back to work, shall we?" he said, happily.

"Whose 'bot was that anyway, do you think?" Alex asked as she went to retrieve the tools from the dumpster.

"Ohh nobody important. Probably the guy whose meant to be here right now. Sending a drone 'cause he can't be bothered to move his own fat, lazy ass..." he trailed off. "Oh, and forget the tools. We don't need 'em anyways." Jim replied flippantly.

"What?" she looked at him quizzically. When he did nothing but look back at her, she asked again. "Then why the hell was I made to carry them?" she asked angrily, as she lowered the bag back into the bin.

"Well, I didn't want you just standing there all lost half the night. Oh, and I know you like being all responsible, so I thought it'd make you feel more..involved?" he told her rather unconvincingly. It sounded more like a question than a direct fact, which made Alex huff irritably. He gave her a wry half-smile before grabbing onto the metal links of the fence, and hoisting himself up it. She followed, making a mental note to scale the fence gracefully and quickly, so as to show up his pride.

The rest of the plan went along relatively unhindered. The key word being 'relatively', as Jim encountered a few problems navigating his way over the fence smoothly; getting his jacket caught on a stray barb, and landing rather roughly having torn himself off it. He looked at Alex a little ashamedly when she jumped from the top and landed perfectly unscathed. Other than that, they managed to get inside safely. Rubbing his eager hands together once he'd broken the lock on the door and entered, he surveyed the store. "Alright, let's see what's for the taking.." he said, making his way through the isles as Alex closed she door behind them.

After about 20 minutes of stuffing as many expensive boxes and bottles into some bags they got from the checkout, they'd practically cleared out the ale section of the shop. Alex wondered where the hell he was going to put it all, and why the hell he needed so much in the first place. It was bordering on ridiculous, but if it kept him busy that's all she really cared about. "So," He said, interrupting her thoughts. "we'll take three bags with us..that leaves three I'll need to come back for..might as well shove 'em in the dumpster or something..I'll just double-bag them so they don't get all dirty.." he went on, relaying his plan to himself, checking everything was good before they set off again. Then he addressed her directly.

"Well Al, What'd I tell ya? Piece of cake." Jim declared, tossing a bottle up into the air, catching it, and replacing it in the bag. He jumped down from the counter, and began heading for the door just as a blaring siren could be heard from down the road. Jim's head shot up, and in his mind he cursed the security asshole who'd called the damn cops. If he ever saw that droid again he was gonna trash it, just to spite the balding bastard. He stole a quick glance at Alex, only to find she'd already begun giving him a harsh glare, which he swore he was getting a headache from by just looking at how angry she was.

"Okay," he started slowly, "don't panic. I-"

"Don't panic?" she asked, Jim was slightly frightened at how calm she sounded, before she spoke again. "Don't panic?!" she stared at him in hysterical disbelief, "You've said that like a million times already! When the hell am I supposed to start panicking, Jim?! Jesus Christ! You said it never saw us!-"

"Al-"

"You promised me this would be easy! How the hell did I let you talk me into this? My mom is gonna freak!"

"Ale-"

"You're so irresponsible! What happens now? What are we gonna do?! This is all your fault! I can't-"

"Alex!" Jim exclaimed, grabbing her attention and putting an end to her nervous rambling. "We're gonna get out of this, okay?" he stepped over to her and places his hands on her shoulders. "I mean it when I say don't panic, 'cause there's no reason to. It's not like we're robbing a bank for god's sake. Just grab two of the bags, and head to the back door, got it? When we get outside, dump one of them in the trash and keep moving." He looked her in the eyes, silently telling her over and over that everything was under control. Breathing a little easier, she nodded, took two of the smaller bags in her hand and ran towards the end of the isle, Jim catching her up as she made it to the door. Aiming for the lock, he kicked it open swiftly, and they both broke out, deposited three of the bags, and sprinted down the long road. What with it being so empty, it would be easy for the cop to spot them, so really all they could do was hold out for a lucky break. Jim took a fleeting look behind them, to be met with the blinding headlights of the police bike about two hundred yards away. Picking up the pace and ushering Alex along, the murky outlines of a few houses started to come into view on the horizon. If they could get to the back and jump another fence or two, the bike'd lose them and they'd be able to make a run to his place. Calculating a route in his head as fast as he could, he checked on his cousin. Her eyes were glued to the road ahead, her mind seemingly in "Get-the-fuck-out-of-here" mode. She must have felt his eyes on her, because she turned to him for a second, and flashed him a reassuring smile. He took that moment of her attention to replay his plan to her.

"'Kay, Alex. The houses coming up are gonna be our escape. When we get about fifty yards away from the first one, make a route change to round the back. There's a wall about 2 houses down from here we can get over onto a little covered dust track" he gestured ahead, "that'll take us straight to my house. We're gonna have to jump it. Don't worry, it's not as big a drop as it looks!" he shouted. It didn't really fill Alex with as much hope as it was meant to, but right now she just had to trust him.

Reaching the housing, they abruptly turned on their heels and careered around the corner at top speed. Flinging themselves over the wall, they landed sprawled out in a mess on the ground. A gust of wind and a flash of bright light indicated that the bike had done exactly what they'd wanted, and carried on ahead, back to the main road. The dust cloud they'd kicked up on impact cleared slowly, as Jim groaned, picking himself up and propping himself against the bricks. Alex was rubbing the side of her head, her eyes unfocused and her mouth slightly agape. She turned to him, only to see him smiling at her widely.

"'Not as big a drop as it looks?'" she questioned with a smirk. He smirked right back at her.

"Hey, so I miss-judged a little. 'Least we're okay..and none of the goods are broken either!" he exclaimed happily, as she made her way to his side and sat with her back against the wall. A long silence ensued as they both caught their breath. Jim was the first to break it.

"All in a day's work." He announced triumphantly, as he pulled out and studied a particularly expensive bottle of whisky. Clapping her on the shoulder, he laughed a little as he cracked open the seal on the top and took a long, hard-earned swig. Alex sighed and let her body slide to the floor again in an exhausted heap, shaking her head and laughing along with him. They may be cousin's by technical terms, but they were both fully aware that in real terms, they were truly brother and sister.


	3. Leaving and Grieving

Thanks for all your lovely reviews and messages!

Many apologies for the excruciatingly slow update! FFN decided to go crazy.

I was actually so annoyed I'd practically given up on writing the rest of this story, but your guys support really, truly helped. I appreciate every single one of you sososososososo SO muchh! :) xo

He didn't even say goodbye.

It wasn't the fact that he joined Starfleet. It wasn't the fact that he'd left her behind. It was that he never even had the decency to tell her. After all they'd been through, he knew how much she depended on him and he just took off. Okay, it was his life, he could do what he wanted. It's not like he was tied down or anything..and of course, it was in his nature to be so reckless. She was mainly surprised at how his departure had managed to shock her so much, it's not like it was out of character or anything. Then again, blowing things out of proportion was always Alex's forte... and so the vicious cycle of blame went round, and around and around..

Dizzy from thought, Alex blinked tiredly as she straightened herself upright on the wooden dining chair. Her body was aching from slouching all day, so as she stretched her arms upward, her back clicked painfully loudly. Turning to stare back out of the window she'd spent the past four years at, the same, dreary desert sight stared back at her, almost mockingly.

The news had hit about a week earlier. A Romulan attack on Earth, Starfleet ordering all recruits back to base. Alex knew that Jim was out there. Hell, knowing him he'd be right in the thick of it, smiling all the way, crazy son of a bitch. For all she knew he could have been killed already, but she mentally cursed herself every time for even thinking about it. He was alive. The main reason she knew being that they hadn't had the visit; The one you see in all those tired old war films. You get a knock at the door, the guy can't even look you in the eye and you know what's coming. Alex dreaded that day, but she refused to believe it would ever come, not for Jim's sake, but for her own.

The front door creaking open brought her out of her reverie. Something landed with a loud thud as she turned around. She was greeted by her mother's bright face grinning across the table at her from the top of two large, over-packed grocery bags. Alex returned the smile, albeit in a somewhat lack-lustre manner. She knew exactly what was in those bags: Birthday supplies. It was her 23rd in about two weeks and her mom & dad were, as always, making a big deal to take Alex's mind off things. It would never work, the trio knew, but that didn't stop them from trying. Since she'd been going to Med School, Alex didn't have enough money to get her own place as well as pay all those boring educational fees, so her parent's had agreed to let her say with them, as long as she payed a little rent here and there and helped out with chores and such. She felt somewhat embarrassed that she was getting older and still hadn't moved out, but she always reminded herself that sometimes? Needs must. At least she had a roof over her head for now.

Instead of milling around and dropping not-so-subtle gift ideas like any other daughter would do, Alex decided to fill her days with studying and practising her medicinal skills. She didn't have a clue what she wanted to do with them now that she actually had her degrees, but she loved having them none the less. Originally, she'd been studying Law, but the thought of being a doctor had always intrigued her. At the age of 18, she finally decided to abandon her previous calling, and enrolled in the nearest med school. It had been a shock when her college tutors had told her she could skip a few years and head on to University instead. It wasn't that she was a medical prodigy or anything, they simply believed she had the book-smart and common sense to get herself through the training, rather than having her waste precious time learning sweet nothing.

The days flew by as she surrounded herself with her work, until one morning she was roughly shaken awake by a pair of thin hands. Rubbing her neck and propping herself up on an elbow, she stared groggily at whoever it was smiling back at her, her eyes barely focused.

"Happy birthday, sweetheart!" her mom sang, coaxing her out of her sleep. Stumbling over her words, Alex's only reply was a half-hearted series of confused grunts. Taking a moment to wet her dry tongue, she tried again.

"Oh..uh, thanks, mom..um..What time is it?" she asked, punctuating her question with a loud yawn.

"Twenty to one. We tried waking you early, so you're dad could see you before work, but you threw a nasty left hook out and rolled back over, so we thought we'd leave you be. Family's arriving at one-ish, so I thought it was about time to get you-"

"One-ish?" Alex exclaimed, "Jesus, mom, there's no way I'll be ready!" she moaned, throwing her covers away, grabbing the nearest semi-respectable clothing and dashing for the bathroom. Twenty minutes later, Alex emerged looking more or less human (a little less than she would have liked), in a simple floral dress and a pair of sandals. She slowly made her way down the stairs to greet her family and friends, hoping that for at least that afternoon she could have a great time.

The rest of the day went by pretty smoothly. She spent most of it outside on the deckchairs with a few close friends, receiving the occasional present and being generally spoilt, which Alex, of course, enjoyed to no end. It got to around six when the sun started to go down and most of the guests started to leave. With only a handful of people left, Alex's parents decided to pull the shameful "blow out the candles" gig and ushered everyone into the main room where the most delicious looking fudge cake was waiting for her.

After five minutes of photos and cringe-worthy singing, Alex took a deep breath. Just as she was about to exhale, a knock at the door distracted her, and everyone let out a groan as her dad went to open it. While she waited, she tried to gauge how red her cheeks had gone. She felt like she was being babied. Suddenly, a gasp from her mother brought her back to attention.

"Sorry, is this a bad time?"

Alex froze. Her breath hitched in her throat.

No. Fucking. Way.

She started trembling. A million thoughts raced through her mind. Was she dreaming? There was no mistaking that voice, but it could all just be her imagination.. Wanting something so bad could be making her hear things, right? Raising her head slowly, afraid to find out if it really was just a hallucination, she reluctantly looked towards the door and was instantly caught in those familiar, oceanic eyes. He was carrying a few suspect liquor bottles and a trademark smirk plastered to his lips. "I'm not interrupting, am I?" he grinned widely.

She felt her heart rise as she blinked back tears. Before she even knew what she'd done, Alex jumped from her place at the table and bounded right into his arms, nearly sending them both to the floor. Crying uncontrollably and laughing heartily at the same time, she gripped onto the leather jacket at the base of his neck as if it was the only thing tethering her to reality. She barely remembered to breathe, while Jim was similarly afflicted from her hands being clasped so tightly around his neck, and his face being pulled into her shoulder. Spluttering, he pulled back so far as to be able to take in oxygen but still keep his hold on her. He smiled and laughed at her comical, heavy sobs while she tried desperately to calm down, only to fail and fall back into heaving tears again. Neither knew what to say.

Instead of waiting for the moment to become awkward, Jim took her by the hand and lead her into the kitchen. Once there, he poured her a stiff drink, and left the bottle as he turned to fetch a glass for himself. When he turned back to face her the bottle was no longer on the side but in her hand, attached to her lips as she took a large gulp and slammed it down on the counter again. He laughed inwardly as he replaced his empty glass and took hers instead.

By this point, everyone had left, muttering their goodbyes and leaving last minute presents on the living room table as they went. Normally it would have seemed rude for the two to just ignore the guests, but they all understood their need to be alone. Standing by the sink, Alex told herself to breathe deeply and keep calm as she gazed into the striking eyes that were staring back at her. He was the same as he ever was. Short, sandy hair, mischievous blue eyes, stunning smile. He had a few non-descript cuts and bruises; from what, she didn't know. The same air of cockiness and pride surrounded him. There he was, after all those years and yet she still couldn't think of a single thing to say, so they both just stood there in comfortable silence, being content with each other's presence.

An hour and a few large whiskeys later, after Alex had finally managed to keep her tears under control, they both moved into the living room and threw themselves down on the couch.

"Happy Birthday."

"Thanks." she replied, with a faint smile. She wished she could have made it sound more sincere, but she still couldn't grasp the situation properly enough.

"So.." Jim tried, rubbing his palms together as if it would help his brain figure out what he wanted to ask. Nothing came to him.

"So." Alex replied lightly. Jim sighed. He'd been through hell and back the last year, why was it that after all that, he couldn't even face a conversation with his best friend?

"Listen, Al, I-" It was irritating, he knew what she was subconsciously waiting for. He knew it had been a mistake, and he wanted her to know that, but his damn, stupid pride was reluctant let him find the words. She glanced at him curiously, waiting for whatever he planned to continue with. Her eyes were red from all the crying, and he knew they wouldn't have been the first tears she'd shed on his part. The guilt was what kept him going all that time. He knew he had to get through it all, just so he could see her again, and tell her, "I- I'm sorry."

"Save it, Jimmy." She smiled, to his surprise. "I honestly don't blame you for a second. You know, it was hard. And, I was angry, at first. Man, I cursed you to hell and back!" She giggled, before going on. "Though, from all I've heard the past couple months about Starfleet, I'm just glad to have you back in one piece." she admitted. Jim returned her grin warmly. The pair sat in comfortable silence for a few seconds, listening to the night outside. Then, Alex spoke again. "So! I heard about the Romulan attacks. You guys must've had your hands full, huh?" She looked at him expectantly. He laughed heartily, as if recalling a personal joke.

"You could say that."

"Well?" she said, waiting for him to continue.

"Well what?" he asked confusedly.

"Come on! Explain! What've you been doing these past few years? I wanna know everything!" Alex exclaimed. "Life out in space has got to be awesome, am I right? You've gotta have some good stories for me! I mean, you must've seen so many different planets! And.." Jim took the opportunity to take in her appearance as she rambled on, trying to guess what he'd been up to. The familiar, excited spark in her eyes had returned and her hands practically moved at light-speed as she tried to illustrate her words. Exactly as he'd left her. "..beautiful! Oh my god, I can just imagine it-"

"Woahh, woah, woah. Alex. You want me to tell you, or you gonna keep rattling on?" he smirked. She drew her fingers across her lips as if she were doing up a zip, nodded her head quickly, and waited for him to begin.

The rest of the night consisted of the pair lying together on the couch, Jim regaling her with every single detail of what had happened since he went away, along with helping her devour several bottles of alcohol and the entire fudge cake. He told her of his friends: McCoy, Scotty, and a rather peculiar Vulcan by the name of Spock; "...And then, it was like someone flipped switch! He just started wailin' on me, in front of everybody! And I mean really damn hard. I still flinch whenever he comes near me. He loves it, I can tell. That smug bastard.." He told her of their many hardships (occasionally embellishing on the facts, mainly the ones concerning him being heroic and the like); and, of course, the conversation was littered with immature mentions of all the gorgeous women he'd encountered. These, in turn, earned him a swift smack on the arm from a rather embarrassed Al. She hung on every word he had to say, completely enthralled by everything he'd been through. When he got to the end, however, what he had to say immediately made Alex choke on her whisky.

"Captain?" she shouted, "You're the freaking captain of the freaking Enterprise? Jesus, Jim! That's incredible! Oh my god, I'm so proud of you!" She gushed, diving on him for another lung-constricting hug, knocking over her glass in the process. He reached behind her into his jacket pocket to pull out the medal he'd received and, keeping one arm around her shoulders, he pulled away just enough to show her it. She was in awe. She took it from his grasp and ran her index finger slowly over the cold metal, taking in every detail. She looked up at him with total admiration. She couldn't believe it. The one and only James Tiberius Kirk, captain of his own god damn ship.

"Not bad for a petty little troublemaker, huh?" he joked, still scarcely able to believe it himself. She laughed, unable to take her eyes off the medal in her palm. He smiled at her expression, full of fascination and pleasant surprise. She then, reluctantly turned and placed it back in Jim's pocket, before getting up to clean the spilt whisky off the wooden floor, still reeling.

Before long, a somewhat tipsy Alex began to feel drowsy. She rolled over onto her side so she was facing her still completely sober best friend. She hated him for being able to handle his ale. She made it a mental note to try and be able to drink him under the table one day. Yawning before she spoke, she called his name. "Jim?" He muttered unintelligibly in response, stifling a large yawn of his own. "How long are you here for?" she questioned, her eyes showing she had already thought of what she wanted to hear, and that she was hoping that would be the case. He sighed, breaking eye contact with her and looking downwards at the cushion under his head, knowing full well what he had to say wasn't the news Alex was expecting. She frowned.

"I have to start back pretty soon. Enterprise is heading up search and rescue missions for any stragglers left from the destruction of Vulcan." He looked back into her eyes. "I wasn't even supposed to leave, but I wasn't gonna come back through Iowa without seeing you, was I? No power in the universe could make me do that!" he said, trying to cheer her up. He knew this wasn't what she wanted to hear, how hard it was going to be for her to be without him; having only just seen him after all those years of nothing. She was silent. "I'll stay here until you fall asleep. Don't worry Al, it won't be another four years before we see eachother again. I promise, okay?" Jim offered. She responded with a sad, half-smile and nodded slowly. Without a word, she shut her eyes. She didn't know what she wanted to say to him in those final moments, so she decided it was best to simply leave it be and enjoy them for what they were. Within minutes, her breathing had slowed and her face relaxed.

Silently, Jim slid off the couch and pulled his leather jacked over his shoulders. Reaching into the left pocket, he wrapped his fingers around the cold, cast metal and ribbon and looked at it thoughtfully. Releasing it onto the coffee table, he leant over Alex and placed a gentle kiss carefully on her forehead. She mumbled in her sleep as he did so and he laughed affectionately. Taking one last look, Jim mentally swore to her that he'd be back one day in the near future. The door creaked wearily as he shut it behind himself and walked off into the warm, early morning twilight.


End file.
